Vodafone Italy has launched what it claims is the country’s first 5G network, offering 80% coverage of Milan using 120 base transceiver station (BTS) sites across the city. The UK-owned firm says it plans to add 5G networks in Turin, Bologna, Naples and Rome during 2019. For the time being, the network is being used for testing and demonstration purposes only, with no 5G-capable devices commercially available from the telco. Vodafone says it has spent EUR90 million (USD102 million) on its 5G development so far.
Separately, rival operator Telecom Italia (TIM) has opened a new 5G testing hub in Rome and has made what it claims to be the first 5G video call in Europe which used millimetre wave (mmWave) equipment.